“You opened your mouth just now, but Hank came out,” Cole quipped, a terrible time for humor. “Let’s just watch how this goes.”
Dominic couldn’t allow that. Sexual assault was a serious offense, more serious than any bar brawl, stolen sheep, or defiance of authority. The safety of a shifter was threatened by another, and he couldn’t let this be Gage’s fight, no matter how much he needed to prove that he could step up as alpha of his pack.
Dominic threw his shirt to the ground and cast aside Cole’s directive. Nudity was common among shifters, an accepted reality that wasn’t frowned upon. There was no shame for a man or woman who shifted in front of the opposite sex. So, Dominicgot out of reach of Cole and any other man who would stop him. He shifted and shook out his raven and silver fur before loping his way toward the battlefield.
Gage, inexperienced in combat and still getting the hang of his own dominance, was losing fast. Nathan was bulkier than him, more muscular, though not as fast, but when he pulled out his own brand of unhinged dominance, Gage was at a disadvantage.
Hank’s long limbs stiffened, and his nostrils flared, ready to pounce on Nathan if he so much as dared to go for a killing blow. Dominic wouldn’t let his beta interfere, and Wyatt seemed to sense that. The white wolf edged closer, steering clear of the two feuding wolves in the center so he had a clear shot at Dominic. That would have broken the rules of engagement, for a second to interfere too soon. Wyatt knew that, or he should have.
Dominic gave him a low warning growl to stay back, his wolfish lips curled up over his teeth. Wyatt did the same, and it was almost enough to provoke him. The growl of all the wolves blended together, defending their alphas and their pack honor.
The ones who could still form intelligible words grew silent as dominance crashed like two thick converging waves of magma. Hot, burning, unstoppable by any force of nature, they collided, and Cole was proven right. Something was about to snap soon, and if Dominic didn’t silence it all, he had a feeling it would destroy that fragile harmony in Tolstone.
With pack members feuding with one another, rivalries would form, fights would break out in the streets, and someone was liable to do something stupid to blow their cover to the human community. With Wyatt’s pack outnumbering Dominic’s… Hank’s earlier reprimand didn’t seem so far-fetched anymore.
Gage let out a shrill whine, and something in Dominic broke free. He charged at Wyatt, the one who had broken his vowof secrecy from the humans, the one who lied to defend the offender even when he was in the wrong, and the one who might have harbored plans to dethrone the Prime Alpha.
Black and white fur clashed in a wriggling mass of fang and claw. Blood spilled into the grass, adding to the violence that continued without them. Betas were torn between two battles. Shifters rallied to their own sides, now distracted by this new conflict between Wyatt and Dominic.
Now, they were divided between their current security in Dominic, and what new terrifying future might come if Dominic failed.
Dominic’s jowls clamped onto Wyatt’s shoulder and shredded the flesh and muscle from his bones. The alpha let out a yowl of pain and desperately reached around to snap at his opponent’s legs to throw him off balance. What Wyatt didn’t know was that Dominic had watched these fights before, had studied his father’s moves when he was Prime Alpha. He practiced with other shifters as a teenager to fight and to win.
He let his dominance explode from his chest to blanket the entire clearing, the entire forest. A heavy, dense energy cascaded around his enemy, demanding submission. Wyatt, for the first time since he had come to Tolstone, cowered beneath Dominic. With white fur stained by deep crimson blood, he dropped and exposed his neck to the Prime Alpha.
Dominic took it between his teeth and bit down just enough to make him squirm and fear for his life like Kimberly had feared for her own earlier that night. Behind him, he heard the victor of the first fight stand victorious.
Gage’s tawny pelt was plastered with more blood than Nathan’s, but the alpha-in-training had proven his mettle and administered his punishment without the aid of the Prime Alpha. Nathan was breathing, but just barely. Dominic waiteduntil Wyatt was done sniffling and writhing before he released him.
Golden eyes swiveled to Xavier and those wolves who dared to support Wyatt after what they had just witnessed. With tails of various colors tucked between their legs and ears folded against their heads, they backed away and gave the victory to Dominic and Gage. They all witnessed that Dominic’s authority could never be questioned, never challenged.
Tolstone was supposed to be a place of peace, of rest. If women like Kimberly couldn’t feel safe in their own homes, then what was the point of being a sanctuary for shifters? Dominic would remind them that this was not a vacation from the rules and pack structure. Order must be maintained, and he would do that at all costs.
*
It almost seemed unfair how cheerfully the birds sang outside her window that morning. The sun streamed through the curtains, and Erica basked in it, still naked under the soft downy comforter. She always loved natural lighting. Perhaps that’s why she adored Victorian homes with their tall and numerous windows.
But right now, of all times, Erica couldn’t rejoice in the ambient light. Not fully. Dominic had left some hours ago, and she wished she hadn’t left her phone downstairs. Maybe he’d called to say he’d be late returning. As much as she understood that he had to go, Erica wished he could have just stayed and let the betas take care of it.
Last night was terrifying and amazing in so many ways. The news that shifters were real, and that Dominic was some headalpha in charge of all the werewolves in Tolstone, was a lot to take in, but even this was overshadowed by a greater discovery.
Erica loved Dominic.
Somehow, between the moment that their fingertips brushed when she took the Rolleiflex from him and last night when they kissed for the second time, the seed had been planted in her heart. It steadily grew from the inside, watered by the constant thought of him, his kind words, and that look in his eyes that made her tummy tingle in the best way. It dug its roots deep into her soul, and the branches busted through the high walls that prevented her from feeling too much. Now, it was a tree, an unmovable oak that would take a hurricane to knock over. This love was staying.
Was this how her mom felt with her dad? Was this how all couples felt when they tumbled into love for the first time? This nervous, blissful feeling, like she was fully alive and yet dying at the same time. It made her happy, and yet while Dominic was away, she felt she couldn’t be completely happy.
She could, however, be hungry. After all that incredible lovemaking, Erica at least wanted to reheat the coffee that Dominic had made the night before and have some toast to replenish her energy. She slipped out of bed, changed into a fresh pair of clothes, combed her hair, and re-braided it. As she walked down the stairs, she smiled and remembered how Dominic had carried her all the way up to her bedroom.
A few moments later, she had a mug in hand and buttered toast on a napkin, walking into the living room with a sense that she wasn’t the same Erica as the night before. Light, almost joyful, she wasn’t as conflicted as she had been before. Things were finally falling into place. The house was still sparsely furnished, her business still needed to be marketed and promoted, and her mother was still dead, but she had Dominic now. They understood one another. She didn’t necessarily likethe fact that he would constantly need to leave to take care of pack business, but she supposed there were things she would have to sacrifice for him as well. Wasn’t there a line that said love was a game of give and take?
Oddly enough, she was ready to treasure every moment learning about this strange, supernatural society, and how Dominic fit into all its workings. Maybe, one day, she could be part of it too. Sipping her coffee, she thought it so laughable that her life could have changed so much in just one night.
Erica glanced up at the mantel and stared at the old photo of her and her mom on the church steps. When she looked at that picture, she didn’t feel the need to fight back tears or the flood of memories. Instead, she smiled. She was actually able to smile without feeling like she had somehow desecrated her mother’s memory by being happy.
It was time.
She finished off her toast, and with the coffee mug only halfway empty, she went back up to her room, to her closet. Beneath a pile of scratchy blankets was the only box to remain unopened, untouched for years. Scrawled across the side in permanent marker were the wordsDo Not Open.
